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Strict Standards: Only variables should be assigned by reference in /home/content/17/7261617/html/plugins/content/facebooklikeandshare/facebooklikeandshare.php on line 362Your Guide to Malta and Gozo - Howard Garden

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This lush green spot in Rabat stretches some 250 metres from the Greeks' gate to beyond Mdina's Main Gate towards Saqqajja. It is named after Joseph Howard, Malta's first Prime Minister who was in office from 1921 to 1923. An embellishment project funded in part by the European Union was completed in August, 2006. St. Augustine Avenue (Vjal Santu Wistin) in front of the Mdina Main Gate divides the garden into a larger segment and a smaller island of greenery.

Centrally located in the garden are two nude lovers who have been in a passionate embrace since 1985, when they were created out of concrete by sculptor Anton Agius. A nearby monument commemorates and honours the inhabitants of Rabat who lost their lives in the tragic, dark days of World War II whilst a bronze sculpture by Anton Agius shows Paul Xuereb, acting President of Malta from 1987 to 1989 overseeing the city from a distance.

In the lesser segment on the Main Gate side, a Norman Cross on top of a stone column crowns a six tiered platform. This is popularly attributed to Count Roger, who is said to have erected this monument after having reinstated the Christian religion, following two centuries of Muslim dominion.

Opposite the garden's minor segment is a well-equipped playground, a treat for children who seriously need a break from churches and museums (and parents who need a break from their children).